Ardith...

AH>Better late than never, I say!  I do appreciate your retyping all this
AH>stuff meanwhile, though, because I can take longer to think on our system.  

  That's why I like the QWK Mail feature on the BBS. I can download
messages and reply at my leisure.

  On another note, I went to the E.R. again 2 weeks ago, with moderate
chest discomfort.

  The good news is that it apparently is NOT cardiovascular
related...the heart enzymes in the blood were OK, the EKG was normal,
and there was no evidence of problems on the chest X-Ray, or blood clots
on the CT Scan.

  The bad news is that it may be digestive tract (stomach and esophagus)
related. I'm going in for an EGD (upper GI) procedure on Wednesday.
They'll put me to sleep for it, but the only prep work is that I'll have
to not eat or drink anything after midnight...but I might go on clear
liquids the day before. However, unlike prep for a colonoscopy, I don't
have to purge the colon this time...and I don't have to get naked for
this procedure.

  They will spray the back of my mouth with a medicine to numb the gag
reflex, then put anti-nausea medicine in the I.V. (I've never done well
with anesthesia), then administer the anesthesia. The procedure itself
should only last about 20 minutes, and they'll inspect my mouth, throat,
esophagus, stomach, and duodenum (the upper part of the small
intestine). I may have a sore throat afterwards, but otherwise, should
be OK.

  To play it safe, I'll spend the night at my Mom's place, then come
back here the next day. I just hope no additional surgery is required. I
had just one more payment from an Emergency Room trip in
February...looks like I'll have a lot more now. I may end up with around
$3000 in medical expenses this year...and while that'll help when the
rent recertification is due again, it ruins any chance of other
activities either inside or outside the Little Rock (Pulaski County)
area. Even though the National Square Dance Convention is in Little Rock
next week, I can't go...not only for that procedure, but I don't have
the extra money to spend.

Daryl

---
 þ OLX 1.53 þ Bad Restaurant: Hospital map on the back of the menu.



















































                                                                               
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